Winter feels so long, doesn't it? As a kid, I remember summer arriving and leaving in what felt like the same day. It FLEW by. The season we all want to last a little
bit longer went by the fastest. I don't think I have ever wanted winter to last a little bit longer. I'm always ready for those first signs of spring. It seems like winter is the longest season, but it's actually not. I was looking out our back window a few mornings ago from the warmth of my living room into the cold, seemingly dead, backyard. I watched as dead leaves fell off of scraggly trees and wondered if the beautiful blooms once on the rose bushes would ever return. Everything SEEMS dead. Not even a bird chirping. It's quiet, cold and dead.
Are you feeling like that in your life? Does this season seem like it will never end? Every time you take a look at what's going on around you all you see is desolation and despair. Maybe you aren't even feeling God's presence or hearing his voice. You feel hopeless, alone, and it doesn't seem the sun will ever come out again. It seems that your life is a garden full of dead, wasted hopes where your joy, peace and purpose are buried.
But, we all know that things aren't always as they seem. Winter is actually a very productive season. Animals are mating and trees and plants that seem dead are just conserving energy and storing up nutrients as they get ready to bloom again. So much is happening in the still, quiet, cold winter. So much that we can't see, but in a short time, the season will change and we will begin to see everything that's been happening under the surface.
God is moving. He is working. He is performing miracles in the supernatural that we can't see yet. He's growing us. He's supplying us with the things we need to be fruitful. We need winter to have spring.
The thing I find most interesting about nature in the winter is that they know to slow down in this season. A lot of animals are hibernating, plants and trees have protective coatings and bark. Their metabolism drops in the winter to protect themselves from the harsh environment. As humans, we like to make big moves and rash decisions when we are in a season of waiting. We tend to take matters into our own hands and manipulate things that don't need to be manipulated. We should rest and wait in God's peace during these seasons. No crazy moves, no big decisions based on temporary circumstances. Spring is so close. The Son will come out again. See what I did there? =) Every season has a purpose. You can't just SURVIVE through this season, but DIVE INTO this season and see what the purpose is. Stop asking God, "WHY ME?" and ask Him, "WHAT are you doing IN me?" He's growing something in you if you will let Him. The dead things that have fallen from your life are just fertilizing the soil where the Word of God is planted around you. Keep watering, keep resting and keep waiting. You will be fruitful and flourishing in this next season and the purpose of the pain will be revealed.
Lean in to Life. It’s messy, but beautiful.
Much love,
LB